Sanitary holder



1941- J. J. BIRD ETAL SANITARY HOLDER Filed Sept. 1, 1939 INVENTORS I W49 ,0

THEIR ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 30, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,268,379 SANITARY HOLDER John J. Bird and James P. Sweeney, Newark, N. J. Application Septemberl, 1939, Serial No. 293,001

1 Claim.

toothpicks. A further object is to provide a device for vending matches and toothpicks together wherein the latter are presented in a more safe and sanitary manner,

The means we prefer to employ for accomplishing the above objects, together with other advantageous and novel features .of our improved holder, are illustrated in the drawing accompanying and forming part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is a front elevation of the invention showing the cover in open position.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same.

Fig. 3 is a rear elevation with part of the cover broken away.

Fig. 4 is a plan of a toothpick sheet enlarged,

. and

Fig. 5 is a plan of modified fingers of the same.

Referring to the drawing, our improved holder will be seen to embody novel means for detachably holding the articles such as toothpicks in a more sanitary manner by holding each article in its own wrapping means. The said means preferably consist of a pair of superposed sheets 2 of transparent material such as Cellophane, held together in a suitable manner by adhesive preferably in a form known as latex, and be- I fingers or envelopes 4 terminate below the match tween which sheets the toothpicks or other artiv cles are placed in a spaced arrangement. Preferably the sheets 2 are divided into what we term fingers or individual envelopes 4 by means of the slits 5 which extend from near the bottom marginal portions 2' of the sheets to the upper edges thereof, the toothpicks 3 being held between the two opposite or superposed plies of the fingers thus formed from the superposed sheets; said bottom marginal portions 2 of the sheets providing an anchorage means for and common, to the several fingers or individual envelopes.

The sheets 2 with the toothpicks 3 held therebetwecn within the several fingers or envelopes 4 are assembled and held in a cover portion 1 of suitable material, by one or more suitable fasteners such as the staple 8 which engages through the anchorage means provided by the bottom marginal portions 2 of the sheets. The

cover portion 1 has a bent up part 9 at the lower front part and an upward extending part ID at the back through which the'staple 8 also engages, and connected with said part 18 is a flap l I adapted to be brought down and tucked behind the part 9 in a well known manner to retain the cover portion closed.

When we desire to vend matches in the same holder with toothpicks we place a sheet of matches l2 in front of the toothpick containing fingers or envelopes 4 formed in connection with the superposed sheets 2 and pass the staple 8 through the match sheet as well as through the anchorage means provided by the bottom marginal portions 2 of said sheets 2.

Preferably we form the toothpicks even with or shorter than the matches so that in the latter arrangement the upper ends of the toothpick containing fingers or envelopes 4 are below the heads of the matches. Thus the toothpick containing heads so as to leave the matches freely accessible for detachment, while nevertheless the tooth-.

pick containing fingers or envelopes together with the match sheet are enclosed within the holder in a thoroughly sanitary manner.

The latex or other adhesive is preferably applied in such a manner as to form a finger or envelope closing boundary eam around each individual toothpick enclosing finger or envelope as shown in Fig, 4 at l4, while also adhering the sheet bottom marginal portions together so as to form the anchorage means common to all said fingers or envelopes.

Preferably the adhesive is of such nature that it does not adhere to parts not coated with itself or which are unlike itself but is adapted to adhere to a portion of adhesive like itself applied on the opposite sheet 2 and is preferably of such character that the sheets 2 adhere to each other on being pressed into contact.

From the above description and an inspection of the drawing it will be understood that the several toothpick containing fingers or envelopes 4 are each initially integrally connected and anchored by their lower ends to the common anchorage means 2 which is bound into the cover member, but in such manner, however, that a selected finger or envelope may be individually manipulated so as to be easily and quickly torn away from said bound anchorage means without disturbing or violating its adjacent fellows. As a consequence of this each individual toothpick is maintained and held in a clean and uncontaminated condition until its removal and use is desired, whereupon it may be easily removed from the cover member and its enclosing envelope opened up to thereby release the same for use.

What we claim is:

A sanitary package of toothpicks adapted to be bound within a match book bottom fold contiguous to the matches therein, said package comprising a pair of superposed sheets of cellulosic material, said sheets being divided into a plurality of opposed fingers separated by slits in the sheets extending therethrough from their top ends but terminating short of their bottom ends so as to provide laterally continuous anchorage sections common to all said fingers and with which the latter are integrally connected for extension therefrom, said superposed anchorage sections being adapted to be secured to and within said match book bottom fold, and the marginal portions of opposed fingers together with said anchorage sections being adhcsively secured together thereby providing individual hermetically sealed containers each enclosing one toothpick, the said division slits extending down beyond the lowermost margins of the container interiors and terminating at the secured anchorage sections, said containers being individually and selectively detachable by tearing the same away from the secured anchorage sections at points between the lower terminals of said division slits.

JOHN J. BIRD. JAMES P. SWEENEY. 

